The Portland daily press., 1887-02-28
r ~at Fight on the Ten-Hour Bills
at Augusta.
The Looney Bill Amended by Its
Enemies.
Its Friends FiIibuster as the Shades
of Night Come On.
Stirring Debates and Exciting Roll
Calls All Day.
Both Sides mastering All Their Fires
for Monday.
Both the Heath and Bryant Bills Put
Aside,
And Then the Third Bill is Attacked
With Bad Amendments.
The Portland Delegation Badly split
to Pieces.
Both the Heath and Bryant Bills Put
Aside,
And Then the Third Bill is Attacked
With Bad Amendments.
The Portland Delegation Badly Spill,
to Pieces.
Especial to the Press.l

| assignment; and when the hour for adjourn
ment came Mr.. Lo0ney asked that the dis
cussion of the ten-hour bills be re-assignet
for next Tuesday. This was a perfectly
proper request, coming from the member
having the majority labor bill in charge, and
parliamentary courtesy and usage dictated
that it should be acceded to. Then, too
many members had gone home, on the full
expectation that the request would be grant
ed as matter of course. But the present
House has fully established reputation fol
doing just as it pleases. 1t decided that the
ten-hour bill must be discussed Saturday
Mr.. Looney strenuously objected so did
Mr.. Wakefield of Bath; but other leaders,
with Mr.. Manley of Augusta, were inclined
to think that it better be decided at once.
When the House assembled this forenoon
there were four labor bills on the calendar
There was the bill establishing the Bureau
of Labor Statistics. and the three ten hour
bills-the Looney, Heath and Bryant bills.
AS the future course of debate turned on the
merits of these bills, it may be well to give
at the outset the important part of the first
sections of these bills, as these sections show
the character of the respective bills:
LooNEY BILL-MAJoRITY REPORT
Sec. 1.-No minor under eighteen years of age
and no woman shall be employed in laboring in
any manufacturing or mechanical business or
establishment in this State more than ten hours in
any one day, except when it is necessary to make
repairs to prevent the interruption of the ordinary
running OF the machinery or when different
apportionment of the hours of labor is made for
the sole purpose of making shorter days work
Tor one day OF the week and in no case shall the
hours Of labor exceed sixty in a week, etc.
BRYANT BILL-MINORITY REPORT A.
Sec. 1.-Ten hours of actu.l labor are legal
DAYS work, and no person shall be employed in
business or establishmentin in this State more than
ten hours in amy one day; prouided, hOUerer that
such person, not minor under eighteen years of
age, may by special agreement ls each case be
| employed longer time for such additional COM
pensa.ion pen on as may be agreed upon between EN-
plos er and employe, provided also that different
be made as to minors between twelve and eighteen
| years of age, but shall never exceed sixty hours
| in any one week, ETC.
HEATH BILL-AIINoRITY REPORT II.
Sec. 1.-No person, except fremen and engln-
eers, shall be employed in laboring in any manu-
| featuring or mechanical establishment or bust
| ness, more than ten hours in any one day
And here part of sec. must be taken to
| give the true character of the bill.
| II any person of the age of twenty-one years
| and upwards, employed in laboring under the
| schedule of time required by sec. 3 of this act
shall while so employed, by an independent and
beyond the time covered by said schedule and
shall receive additi. nal compensation, therefor
the original contract then and thereafter remain
ing in force, and such Independent and subse-
quent contract is mads in good faith and with no
intent TO evade the provisions of this act and the
labor performed hereunder, during any cOnsecu-
| tive three months, shall be performed upon not
more than thirty different days, then any labor so
performed upon any or all Of said thirty days shall
not be deemed to be in violation of this act. Any
minor, OF the age of eighteen years and upwards.
may make max! the contracts authorized by this sec.
ton, with the consent of his parent or guardian, If
| self -
These sections embody the main principles
and differences of the two bills.
These two bills, with the bill for the bu-
| calendar With slight amendments the lat
ter bill was passed to be engrossed, and put
| out of the way. When this was done there
was another fight to defer the other bills to
Monday, by adjourning. But Mr.. Looney
wanted them to tight it out, and so did ma
| jority Of the others.
The House refused to adjourn, and Mr.
Burns OF Poland Immediately moved that the
| minority report B Heath bilD be substituted
Tor the majority report Iooney bilD. Mr..
| Shaw of Portland moved to amend this mo-
| tlon by substituting instead of the Heath
| bill the Bryant bill minority report Al. Mr..
| Shaw gave his reasons for his motion in
| short speech, which was made just before
| the noon recess.
When the afternoon session began, at 9. 80
| o'clock, Mr.. Shaw closed, and Mr.. Bryant
| took the floor to support his measure,
Then Mr.. Powers of Houlton, who ranks
| high among the debaters of the House,
| Powers first speech on the question. He
| took the ground that the Looney bill should
| be passed because it is ten-hour bill that
| protected women and minors-those who
needed protection and should receive it. The
| effect of the speech was very satisfactory
| fOr the friends Of tho m inritu
Mr.. Fogg of Portland replied to Mr.. Pow
| ers. Mr.. Fogg favored the Bryant bill, be-
| cause it did not discriminate against women.
He took strong grounds against any discrim-
not contract to work as long as they pleased.
Mi. Cloutler Of Lewiston, a French Re-
| publican of that city, followed with bright
| speech in favor of a ten-hour law that
would amount to something. He favored
| the LoOney bill.
| Mr. Walton of Skowhegan took up the
| hatchet in favor of the Bryant bill, because
| 1t put women on an equal footing with men,
and allowed the right of contract. lie said
they were there to legislate for the people
| and not for party.
/ Mr.. Noble of Lewiston then made. one of
his best speeches for the Looney BILL and
| Mr. Pattangall of Pembroke answered him
with spirit and without delay.
1hls Drought out another Of the best re-
| serves of the other side, Mr.. Barker of Ban
| gor. Mr.. Barker, like Mr.. Powers, was
| fresh in the field and he struck good blow
for the Looney bill.
| Mr.. Harrington af Norridgewock followed
| with the statement that he was in favor of
| legislation to protect minors, and in favor
| of no more.
Mr.. Looney then spoke for the first time
today. He charged that one of his colleagues
from Portland, meaning Mr.. Shaw, had
been present as member of the council
| where the so called L0oney bill was drafted
and had made no opposition to it; but that
| now he saw fit to come up and oppose it,
Later in the course of his speech, Mr.
Looney stirred Mr.. Fogg up, and the latter
| replied vigorously.
Dr. Adams Of Litchfeld thought there had
been talking enough; it was not instructing
any one; they had better vote.
Mr.. Talbot of East MachiaS thought
neither Of the. bills satisfactory; but he
found In all OF them an evidence of the sin
fulness OF the Republicans.
1t was five minutes to five o'clock wher
Mr.: POWERS moved the previous question
and the House ordered that the main ques-
tion be put to vote.
The question was on Mr.. Shaw's motion Il
nave the Bryant and not the Heath bill sub
stituted for the Looney bill. Those who fav
ored the Bryant bill voted "yes:" those VIII,
favored the Heath bill voted no." 1t will
be remembered that weekago vote wa
taken on q motion, to substitute the olt
Heath bill for the old Looney bill. To indi
cate the strength of the Heath bill then ant
now, and to show how many the Looney bill
lost in the week to the Bryant bill the follow
ing arrangement is made in the list of yea
and NAYS: Those who week ago voted fo
the Heath bill are in italics those who vote,
for the Looney bill are in Roman, and thos
who were absent in small capitals. This
the roll call, the ''yeas being the Bryant men
the nays all others:
| WEAKNESSES Adams, Alexander. (Dem,) Bra
ish, Carleton, Chase of Damariscotta, Cook, Coz
son. Cushing, DICKEY, [Dem.) Farrar, Ferguson
Floy, Fogg, Grindle Hamilton of Cumberland
Hamilton of Gouldsboro, Harding of Gorhar
Harrington, Hawkes., Jones, Kidder, Libby {
Bnrnham, Llttefeld of Prospect Lombard
Ross, Russell, Sanborn OF Island Falls, Sanbor
Of Stanosh, Sawyer. Shaw, ,Silsby, Sg.vesteI
Wiley, DEM Woodman~42
NAYs-Alden, Aver, Barker, Bennett dem.
Billings Bishop, BowKER, Boynton, (Dem.) Brat